Advanced search
Publication Cover
Chinese Sociological Review Volume 47, 2015 - Issue 3: Special Issue on “China Family Panel Studies (CFPS)”
Submit an article Journal homepage
1,873
Views
93
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Original Articles

Living Arrangements of the Elderly in China and Consequences for Their Emotional Well-being

Qiang RenCenter for Social Research, Peking University, ChinaCorrespondence[email protected]
&
Donald J. TreimanCalifornia Center for Population Research, UCLA, Los Angeles, USACorrespondence[email protected]
Pages 255-286 | Published online: 29 May 2015

Citations (93)

Keep up to date with the latest research on this topic with citation updates for this article.

Subscribe to citation updates

Read on this site (16)

Xinyi Zhao, Quan Zhang, Ying Ji, Huiying Liu & Vivian W. Q. Lou. (2023) Influence of spousal caregiving and living arrangement on depression among husband caregivers in rural China. Aging & Mental Health 27:7, pages 1266-1273.
Read now
Yanbing Zeng, Chenxi Lin & Ya Fang. (2023) Factors influencing the demands for home and community-based care services among older adults living alone in China. Journal of Aging & Social Policy 0:0, pages 1-17.
Read now
Yot Amornkitvikai, Vipan Prachuabmoh & Martin O’Brien. (2023) Does social participation make Thai psychologically abused elders happier? a stress-buffering effect hypothesis. Journal of Elder Abuse & Neglect 35:2-3, pages 89-120.
Read now
Man-Yee Kan & Muzhi Zhou. (2022) Gender and intergenerational support in east Asian families. Chinese Sociological Review 54:4, pages 333-341.
Read now
Shohei Yoda. (2022) Intergenerational living arrangements and marital fertility in Japan: a counterfactual approach. Chinese Sociological Review 54:4, pages 374-400.
Read now
Yan Wei & Wen-Jen Tsay. (2022) Does Distance Make Happiness? Geographic Proximity of Adult Children and the Well-being of Older Persons. Journal of Aging & Social Policy 0:0, pages 1-19.
Read now
Jia Miao, Xiaogang Wu & Donglin Zeng. (2022) Promoting ageing in place in Hong Kong: neighbourhood social environment and depression among older adults. Journal of Asian Public Policy 0:0, pages 1-18.
Read now
Ming Wen & Qiang Ren. (2021) Cognitive and psychological health implications of living alone among middle-aged and older adults in China. Asian Population Studies 17:2, pages 181-200.
Read now
Jia Miao, Donglin Zeng & Zhilei Shi. (2021) Can neighborhoods protect residents from mental distress during the COVID-19 pandemic? Evidence from Wuhan. Chinese Sociological Review 53:1, pages 1-26.
Read now
Dan Tang, Zhiyong Lin & Feinian Chen. (2020) Moving beyond living arrangements: the role of family and friendship ties in promoting mental health for urban and rural older adults in China. Aging & Mental Health 24:9, pages 1523-1532.
Read now
Tony Huiquan Zhang, Jing Hu & Xichao Zhang. (2020) Disparities in Subjective Wellbeing: Political Status, Urban-Rural Divide, and Cohort Dynamics in China. Chinese Sociological Review 52:1, pages 56-83.
Read now
Bum Jung Kim, Lin Chen, Yura Lee & Ling Xu. (2019) Quality of life of elderly Chinese immigrants: focusing on living arrangements and social capital. Educational Gerontology 45:6, pages 377-389.
Read now
Bernhard Nauck & Qiang Ren. (2018) Coresidence in the Transition to Adulthood: The Case of the United States, Germany, Taiwan, and Mainland China. Chinese Sociological Review 50:4, pages 443-473.
Read now
Meng Chen. (2018) Does Marrying Well Count More Than Career? Personal Achievement, Marriage, and Happiness of Married Women in Urban China. Chinese Sociological Review 50:3, pages 240-274.
Read now
Huaqing Tan, Chaoran Guo & Yi Zhou. (2017) Cadre Children and Cognitive Function of Parents in China: The Value of Political Connection. Chinese Sociological Review 49:4, pages 382-406.
Read now
Yung-Han Chang. (2015) Childcare Needs and Household Composition: Is Household Extension a Way of Seeking Childcare Support?. Chinese Sociological Review 47:4, pages 343-366.
Read now

Articles from other publishers (77)

Ying-Ting Wang. (2023) Coresidence and its Effect on the Life Satisfaction of Unmarried Adults and Their Parents: Evidence from Taiwan. Applied Research in Quality of Life.
Crossref
Lyubing Feng, Yuxi He & Peng Zhan. (2023) Economic independence and living arrangements of older women with agricultural Hukou in China. China Economic Review 81, pages 102045.
Crossref
Qian Song, Luoman Bao & Jeffery A. Burr. (2023) The Structure and Transition of “Extended Living Arrangements” in Later Life: Evidence from Rural China. Social Indicators Research 169:1-2, pages 365-395.
Crossref
Melissa Jauch, Fanny Lalot & Rainer Greifeneder. (2023) No man is an island: Men living alone during COVID ‐19 report lower need satisfaction and well‐being . Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology 33:4, pages 1002-1017.
Crossref
Annu Antony, Swayam Pragyan Parida, Priyamadhaba Behera & Susanta Kumar Padhy. (2023) Geriatric depression: prevalence and its associated factors in rural Odisha. Frontiers in Public Health 11.
Crossref
Jin Fan, Weiguo Zhang & Hong Mi. (2022) Intergenerational Proximity to Aging Parents and Depression Among Married Persons in China. Research on Aging 45:3-4, pages 347-360.
Crossref
Muna Al Bahar, Masood Badri, Mugheer Al Khaili, Fahad Al Neyadi, Guang Yang & Asma Al Rashdi. (2021) A Path Analytic Model Exploration of Determinants of Happiness of Older Adults in Abu Dhabi. Ageing International 48:1, pages 108-131.
Crossref
Rong Lin. (2023) Renovation and upgrading of pension design based on China's national conditions. Highlights in Business, Economics and Management 5, pages 1-7.
Crossref
Yonglin Zhu, Bo-Wei Zhu, Yingnan Te, Nurwati Binti Badarulzaman & Lei Xiong. (2023) Exploring the Key Factors of Old Neighborhood Environment Affecting Physical and Mental Health of the Elderly in Skipped-Generation Household Using an RST-DEMATEL Model. Systems 11:2, pages 104.
Crossref
Ning Wang, Maria Evandrou, Jane Falkingham & Maodi Xu. (2022) Typologies of Intergenerational Relations in Urban and Rural China: A Latent Class Analysis. Journal of Applied Gerontology 42:2, pages 313-323.
Crossref
Houxi Zhou, Xuebiao Zhang, Candi Ge, Jingyi Wang & Xiaolong Sun. (2023) Does Internet Use Boost the Sustainable Subjective Well-Being of Rural Residents? Evidence from Rural China. Sustainability 15:2, pages 1652.
Crossref
Rongjun Sun & Zachary Zimmer. (2022) Is Transition in Living Arrangements Associated With Older Adults’ Life Satisfaction When Preference Is Considered?. The Journals of Gerontology: Series B 77:12, pages 2296-2305.
Crossref
Xiaowei Dong, Nawi Ng & Ailiana Santosa. (2022) Family structure and depressive symptoms among older adults in China: A marginal structural model analysis. Journal of Affective Disorders.
Crossref
Dong Zhou, Yi Xu & Pengya Ai. (2022) The Effects of Online Social Interactions on Life Satisfaction of Older Chinese Adults: New Insights Based on a Longitudinal Approach. Healthcare 10:10, pages 1964.
Crossref
Ching-Yi Chen. (2021) What makes older adults happier? Urban and rural differences in the living arrangements and life satisfaction of older adults. Journal of Housing and the Built Environment 37:3, pages 1131-1157.
Crossref
Lijuan Chen, Yiang Li & Qiuyue Yang. (2022) The Effect of Grandparenting on the Depression and Life Satisfaction among Middle-Aged and Older Chinese Adults. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 19:17, pages 10790.
Crossref
Shuxi Wu. (2022) Television Adaptation in the Age of Media Convergence: Chinese Intellectual Property Shows and the Case of All Is Well . Adaptation 15:2, pages 187-206.
Crossref
Jingting Meng, Zaiguo Lin & Tao Wang. (2022) The Framework of a Rural Pension System based on a Mutual Aid Network. Wireless Communications and Mobile Computing 2022, pages 1-7.
Crossref
Aihong Li. (2022) The effects of adult child migration and migration duration on the emotional health of rural elders in China. Ageing and Society, pages 1-24.
Crossref
Jia Chen & Xiaochen Zhou. (2022) Sandwich generation in China: Exchange pattern with older parents and educational expenditure on young children. Asian Journal of Social Science 50:2, pages 122-129.
Crossref
Xin-Jean Lim, Siew Imm Ng, Norazlyn Kamal Basha, Jun-Hwa Cheah & Hiram Ting. (2020) To move or not to move? A study of sustainable retirement village in Malaysia. Current Psychology 41:4, pages 2122-2138.
Crossref
Fengyu Wu. (2021) Intergenerational Support and Life Satisfaction of Older Parents in China: A Rural–Urban Divide. Social Indicators Research 160:2-3, pages 1071-1098.
Crossref
Luoman Bao. (2021) Children’s Relative Living Proximity and Intergenerational Support to Older Parents in China. Research on Aging 44:3-4, pages 241-253.
Crossref
Yang Han & Roger Yat-Nork Chung. (2022) The role of neighborhood social capital on health and health inequality in rural and urban China. Preventive Medicine 156, pages 106989.
Crossref
Deborah Kerstetter, Xiangyou Shen, Xiaoli Yi, Bing Pan, Gaojun Zhang, Rui Li, Jie Gao & Guangming Li. (2020) Sources of Happiness: A Mixed Methods Phenomenological Study of Factors Affecting Residents’ Subjective Wellbeing in Shenzhen, China. Psychological Reports 125:1, pages 167-199.
Crossref
Wei-Jun Jean YeungWei-Jun Jean Yeung. 2022. Demographic and Family Transition in Southeast Asia. Demographic and Family Transition in Southeast Asia 61 74 .
Yu Guo, Tingshuai Ge, Li Mei, Lina Wang & Jingbo Li. (2021) Widowhood and Health Status Among Chinese Older Adults: The Mediation Effects of Different Types of Support. Frontiers in Public Health 9.
Crossref
Robert Gajda, Marzena Jeżewska-Zychowicz & Ewa Raczkowska. (2021) Differences in Dietary Patterns among the Polish Elderly: A Challenge for Public Health. Nutrients 13:11, pages 3966.
Crossref
Liyang Xie, Wei Xu & Yi Zhou. (2021) Spillover effects of adult children’s schooling on parents’ smoking cessation: evidence from China’s compulsory schooling reform. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health 75:11, pages 1104-1110.
Crossref
Seung-won Emily Choi & Zhenmei Zhang. (2021) Caring as curing: Grandparenting and depressive symptoms in China. Social Science & Medicine 289, pages 114452.
Crossref
Yen-Han Lee, Chia-Hung Lin, Jia-Ren Chang, Ching-Ti Liu, Mack Shelley & Yen-Chang Chang. (2021) Transition of Living Arrangement and Cognitive Impairment Status among Chinese Older Adults: Are They Associated?. Medicina 57:9, pages 961.
Crossref
Sneha Kumar & Lindy Williams. (2020) Health and marital status of older Chinese couples and implications for intergenerational co-residence. Ageing and Society 41:9, pages 2143-2170.
Crossref
Jia Chen, Xiaochen Zhou & Nan Lu. (2021) Providing instrumental support to older parents of multi-child families in China: are there different within-family patterns?. Ageing and Society 41:8, pages 1770-1787.
Crossref
Yazhen Yang, Maria Evandrou & Athina Vlachantoni. (2021) The impact of living arrangements and intergenerational support on the health status of older people in China: are rural residents disadvantaged compared to urban residents?. Ageing and Society, pages 1-26.
Crossref
Chang Liu, Fujin Yi, Zhigang Xu & Xu Tian. (2021) Do living arrangements matter?—Evidence from eating behaviors of the elderly in rural China. The Journal of the Economics of Ageing 19, pages 100307.
Crossref
Tengku Aizan Hamid, Hazwan Mat Din, Mohamad Fazdillah Bagat & Rahimah Ibrahim. (2021) Do Living Arrangements and Social Network Influence the Mental Health Status of Older Adults in Malaysia?. Frontiers in Public Health 9.
Crossref
Sangeetha Tharmathurai, Mohamad K. Muhammad-Ikmal, Asrenee A. Razak, Jemaima Che-Hamzah, Yaakub Azhany, Qamaruddin Fazilawati & Ahmad T. Liza-Sharmini. (2021) Depression and Severity of Glaucoma Among Older Adults in Urban and Suburban Areas. Journal of Glaucoma 30:5, pages e205-e212.
Crossref
Denise Burnette, Xujingzi Ye, Zhaowen Cheng & Hangqing Ruan. (2020) Living alone, social cohesion, and quality of life among older adults in rural and urban China: a conditional process analysis. International Psychogeriatrics 33:5, pages 469-479.
Crossref
Zachary Zimmer & Chi-Tsun Chiu. (2021) Are Older Persons in China Living More Years in an Independent Living Arrangement? Estimates Using Multistate Life Tables. Demography 58:2, pages 739-762.
Crossref
Ke Shen, Feinian Chen & Hangqing Ruan. (2021) The mixed blessing of living together or close by: Parent–child relationship quality and life satisfaction of older adults in China. Demographic Research 44, pages 563-594.
Crossref
Elizabeth Wianto, Elty Sarvia & Chien-Hsu Chen. (2021) Authoritative Parents and Dominant Children as the Center of Communication for Sustainable Healthy Aging. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18:6, pages 3290.
Crossref
Jia Miao & Xiaogang Wu. (2019) Subjective wellbeing of Chinese elderly: a comparative analysis among Hong Kong, Urban China and Taiwan. Ageing and Society 41:3, pages 686-707.
Crossref
Zi-qing Yuan, Xian Zheng & Eddie C. M. Hui. (2020) Happiness Under One Roof? The Intergenerational Co-residence and Subjective Well-Being of Elders in China. Journal of Happiness Studies 22:2, pages 727-765.
Crossref
Bernhard Nauck & Qiang Ren. (2021) Coresidence with kin and subjective well-being in the transition to adulthood: A comparison of the United States, Germany, Japan and China. Chinese Journal of Sociology 7:1, pages 22-47.
Crossref
Yaoyue Hu, Milagros Ruiz, Martin Bobak & Pekka Martikainen. (2020) Do multigenerational living arrangements influence depressive symptoms in mid-late life? Cross-national findings from China and England. Journal of Affective Disorders 277, pages 584-591.
Crossref
Yulei Weng & Dan Li. (2020) Realizing an Anticipation: Anticipated Support and Received Support from Children in China. Journal of Family Issues 41:11, pages 2160-2178.
Crossref
Zai Liang & Feinuo Sun. (2020) The lasting impact of parental migration on children's education and health outcomes: The case of China. Demographic Research 43, pages 217-244.
Crossref
Reuben Ng, Si Qi Lim, Su Ying Saw & Kelvin Bryan Tan. (2020) 40-Year Projections of Disability and Social Isolation of Older Adults for Long-Range Policy Planning in Singapore. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 17:14, pages 4950.
Crossref
Yan Zhang. (2020) Are Empty-Nest Elders Unhappy? Re-examining Chinese Empty-Nest Elders’ Subjective Well-Being Considering Social Changes. Frontiers in Psychology 11.
Crossref
Shen (Lamson) Lin. (2019) Inequities in Access: The Impact of a Segmented Health Insurance System on Physician Visits and Hospital Admissions Among Older Adults in the 2014 China Family Panel Studies. International Journal of Health Services 50:2, pages 184-198.
Crossref
Qian Song & Feinian Chen. (2018) Living Arrangements, Offspring Migration, and Health of Older Adults in Rural China: Revelation From Biomarkers and Propensity Score Analysis. Journal of Aging and Health 32:1-2, pages 71-82.
Crossref
Rongduo Liu & Klaus G. Grunert. (2020) Satisfaction with food-related life and beliefs about food health, safety, freshness and taste among the elderly in China: A segmentation analysis. Food Quality and Preference 79, pages 103775.
Crossref
Qi Xu, Jinshui Wang & Jingjing Qi. (2019) Intergenerational coresidence and subjective well-being of older adults in China: The moderating effect of living arrangement preference and intergenerational contacts. Demographic Research 41, pages 1347-1372.
Crossref
Zi Zhou, Lun Cai, Meilan Zhuang, Y. Alicia Hong & Ya Fang. (2019) A longitudinal analysis of the association between the living arrangements and psychological well-being of older Chinese adults: the role of income sources. BMC Geriatrics 19:1.
Crossref
Lixing Li & Xiaoyu Wu. (2019) Housing price and intergenerational co-residence in urban China. Journal of Housing Economics 45, pages 101596.
Crossref
Rob J. Gruijters & John Ermisch. (2018) Patrilocal, Matrilocal, or Neolocal? Intergenerational Proximity of Married Couples in China. Journal of Marriage and Family 81:3, pages 549-566.
Crossref
Ming Wen, Qiang Ren, Kim Korinek & Ha N. Trinh. (2019) Living in skipped generation households and happiness among middle-aged and older grandparents in China. Social Science Research 80, pages 145-155.
Crossref
Ye Luo, Xi Pan & Zhenmei Zhang. (2019) Productive activities and cognitive decline among older adults in China: Evidence from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study. Social Science & Medicine 229, pages 96-105.
Crossref
Jia Miao, Xiaogang Wu & Xiulin Sun. (2019) Neighborhood, social cohesion, and the Elderly's depression in Shanghai. Social Science & Medicine 229, pages 134-143.
Crossref
Hongwei Xu. (2019) Physical and mental health of Chinese grandparents caring for grandchildren and great-grandparents. Social Science & Medicine 229, pages 106-116.
Crossref
Shanwen Zhu, Man Li, Renyao Zhong & Peter C. Coyte. (2019) The Effects of Co-Residence on the Subjective Well-Being of Older Chinese Parents. Sustainability 11:7, pages 2090.
Crossref
Mengting Li & Haijing Dai. (2018) Determining the primary caregiver for disabled older adults in Mainland China: spouse priority and living arrangements. Journal of Family Therapy 41:1, pages 126-141.
Crossref
Zheng Wu & Margaret J. Penning. (2018) Children and the Mental Health of Older Adults in China: What Matters?. Population Research and Policy Review 38:1, pages 27-52.
Crossref
Xin Hu, Bo Xia, Yi Hu, Martin Skitmore & Laurie Buys. (2019) WHAT HINDERS THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHINESE CONTINUING CARE RETIREMENT COMMUNITY SECTOR? A NEWS COVERAGE ANALYSIS. International Journal of Strategic Property Management 23:2, pages 108-116.
Crossref
Xiangnan Chai & Hina Kalyal. (2018) Cell Phone Use and Happiness Among Chinese Older Adults: Does Rural/Urban Residence Status Matter?. Research on Aging 41:1, pages 85-109.
Crossref
강은나 & 이민홍. (2018) Identifying the Effect of Living Alone on Life in Later Adulthood: Comparison between Living Alone and Those Living with Others with a Propensity Score Matching Analysis. Health and Social Welfare Review 38:4, pages 196-226.
Crossref
Zhiying Zhou, Zhongliang Zhou, Jianmin Gao, Sha Lai & Gang Chen. (2018) Urban-rural difference in the associations between living arrangements and the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of the elderly in China—Evidence from Shaanxi province. PLOS ONE 13:9, pages e0204118.
Crossref
BINA GUBHAJU, TRULS ØSTBYE & ANGELIQUE CHAN. (2017) Living arrangements of community-dwelling older Singaporeans: predictors and consequences. Ageing and Society 38:6, pages 1174-1198.
Crossref
Peng Nie & Alfonso Sousa-Poza. (2018) Commute time and subjective well-being in urban China. China Economic Review 48, pages 188-204.
Crossref
Zhixin Feng, Jane Falkingham, Xiaoting Liu & Athina Vlachantoni. (2017) Changes in living arrangements and mortality among older people in China. SSM - Population Health 3, pages 9-19.
Crossref
Anning Hu. (2017) Providing More but Receiving Less: Daughters in Intergenerational Exchange in Mainland China. Journal of Marriage and Family 79:3, pages 739-757.
Crossref
Wei Zhang, Qiushi Feng, Joy Lacanienta & Zhihong Zhen. (2017) Leisure participation and subjective well-being: Exploring gender differences among elderly in Shanghai, China. Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics 69, pages 45-54.
Crossref
Sor Tho Ng, Nai Peng Tey & M. Niaz Asadullah. (2017) What matters for life satisfaction among the oldest-old? Evidence from China. PLOS ONE 12:2, pages e0171799.
Crossref
Di Liang & Donglan Zhang. (2017) Children’s Geographic Proximity and Older Parents’ Depressive Symptoms in China. Gerontology and Geriatric Medicine 3, pages 233372141772950.
Crossref
Minzhi Ye, Yiwei Chen & Yisheng Peng. 2017. Family, Work and Wellbeing in Asia. Family, Work and Wellbeing in Asia 43 64 .
Chenziheng Weng, Yaofeng Han & Ya Fang. (2018) Endogenous Living Arrangement and Health of Older Adults: Evidence from Instrumental Variable Estimation. SSRN Electronic Journal.
Crossref
Agar Brugiavini, Danilo Cavapozzi & Yeo Pan. (2017) Education Gradient in Well-Being Late in Life: The Case of China. SSRN Electronic Journal.
Crossref

Reprints and Corporate Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:

Order Reprints Request Corporate Permissions

Academic Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:

Request Academic Permissions

If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.

Related research

People also read lists articles that other readers of this article have read.

Recommended articles lists articles that we recommend and is powered by our AI driven recommendation engine.

Cited by lists all citing articles based on Crossref citations.
Articles with the Crossref icon will open in a new tab.